Constitution of the Lenovan Empire
The Constitution of the Lenovan Empire is the supreme law of the Lenovan Empire.2 The Constitution, originally comprising seven articles, delineates the national frame of government. Its first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, whereby the federal government is divided into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Senate (Article One); the executive, consisting of the Emperor and Chancellor (Article Two); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article Three). Articles Four, Five and Six embody concepts of federalism, describing the rights and responsibilities of state governments, the states in relationship to the federal government, and the shared process of constitutional amendment. Article Seven establishes the procedure subsequently used by the thirteen States to ratify it. It is regarded as the oldest written and codified national constitution in force.3 Since the Constitution came into force in 1000, it has been amended 27 times, including one amendment that repealed a previous one,4 in order to meet the needs of a nation that has profoundly changed since the eighteenth century.5 In general, the first ten amendments, known collectively as the Bill of Rights, offer specific protections of individual liberty and justice and place restrictions on the powers of government. The majority of the seventeen later amendments expand individual civil rights protections. Others address issues related to federal authority or modify government processes and procedures. Amendments to the Lenovan Empire Constitution, unlike ones made to many constitutions galactic wide, are appended to the document. All four pages8 of the original Lenovan Constitution are written on parchment.9 According to the Lenovan: "The Constitution's first three words—''We the People''—affirm that the government of the Lenovan Empire exists to serve its citizens. For over two centuries the Constitution has remained in force because its framers wisely separated and balanced governmental powers to safeguard the interests of majority rule and minority rights, of liberty and equality, and of the federal and state governments."5 The first permanent constitution of its kind,a adopted by the people's representatives for an expansive nation, it is interpreted, supplemented, and implemented by a large body of constitutional law, and has influenced the constitutions of other nations. Original Frame Neither the Convention which drafted the Constitution, nor the Congress which sent it to the thirteen provinces for ratification in the autumn of 1000, gave it a lead caption. To fill this void, the document was most often titled "A frame of Government" when it was printed for the convenience of ratifying conventions and the information of the public.47 This Frame of Government consisted of a preamble, seven articles and a signed closing endorsement Preamble "We the loyal Subjects of the Imperial House of Blake" in an original edition The preamble to the Constitution serves as an introductory statement of the document's fundamental purposes and guiding principles. It neither assigns powers to the federal government,48 nor does it place specific limitations on government action. Rather, it sets out the origin, scope and purpose of the Constitution. Its origin and authority is in "We, the loyal Subjects of the Imperial House of Blake". This echoes the Declaration of the Empire . "One people" dissolved their connection with another, and assumed among the powers of the earth, a sovereign nation-state. The scope of the Constitution is twofold. First, "to form a more perfect Empire" than had previously existed in the "perpetual Union" of the Articles of Confederation. Second, to "secure the blessings of liberty", which were to be enjoyed by not only the first generation, but for all who came after, "our posterity".49 Article One Article One describes the Senate, the legislative branch of the federal government. Section 1, reads, "All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in the Imperial Senate, which shall consist of a House of Peers and House of Deputies." The article establishes the manner of election and the qualifications of members of each body. Deputies must be at least 18 years old, be a citizen of the Lenovan Empire or it dominions for seven years, and live in the province they represent. Senators must be at least 18 years old, be a citizen, a member of the Nobility ,clergy or an appointee of the Emperor Article I, Section 8 enumerates the powers delegated to the legislature. Financially, the Senate has the power to tax, borrow, pay debt and provide for the common defense and the general welfare; to regulate commerce, bankruptcies, and coin money. To regulate internal affairs, it has the power to regulate and govern military forces and militias, suppress insurrections and repel invasions. It is to provide for naturalization, standards of weights and measures, post offices and roads, and patents; to directly govern the federal district and cessions of land by the states for forts and arsenals. Internationally, the Senate has the power to define and punish piracies and offenses against the Law of Nations, to declare war and make rules of war. The final Necessary and Proper Clause, also known as the Elastic Clause, expressly confers incidental powers upon the Senate without the Articles' requirement for express delegation for each and every power. Article I, Section 9 lists eight specific limits on Senatory power. The Supreme Court has sometimes broadly interpreted the Commerce Clause and the Necessary and Proper Clause in Article One to allow the Senate to enact legislation that is neither expressly allowed by the enumerated powers nor expressly denied in the limitations on the Senate. In Reyes v. Pandora (1019), the Supreme Court read the Necessary and Proper Clause to permit the federal government to take action that would "enable it to perform the high duties assigned to it the Constitution in the manner most beneficial to the people",50 even if that action is not itself within the enumerated powers. Chief Justice Lannister clarified: "Let the end be legitimate, let it be within the scope of the Constitution, and all means which are appropriate, which are plainly adapted to that end, which are not prohibited, but consist with the letter and spirit of the Constitution, are Constitutional."50 Article Two Article Two describes the office, qualifications, and duties of the Sovereign , Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor. The monarch (otherwise referred to as the sovereign or "His/Her Imperial Majesty abbreviated H.I.M is the head of state and they have prerogatives The imperial prerogative includes the powers to appoint and dismiss ministers, regulate the civil service, issue passports, declare war, make peace, direct the actions of the military, and negotiate and ratify treaties, alliances, and international agreements. However, a treaty cannot alter the domestic laws of the Empire; an Act of Senate is necessary in such cases. The monarch is the Head of the Armed Forces (the Imperial Navy, the Imperial Army, Imperial Starfighter Corps, Imperial Police Corps and the Imperial Guard), and accredits Lenovan High Commissioners and ambassadors, and receives heads of missions from foreign states. The Chancellor is head of the executive branch of the federal government and the head of government. Article two is modified by the 12th Amendment which tacitly acknowledges political parties, and the 25th Amendment relating to office succession. The chancellor is to receive only one compensation from the federal government. The inaugural oath is specified to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. The Sovereign and Chancellor are the Co-Commander in Chiefs of the Lenovan Armed Forces and provincial militias when they are mobilized. They makes treaties with the advice and consent of a two-thirds quorum of the House of Deputies. To administer the federal government, the chancellor and sovereign commissions all the offices of the federal government as the Senate directs; he or she may require the opinions of its principal officers and make "recess appointments" for vacancies that may happen during the recess of the Senate. The chancellor is to see that the laws are faithfully executed, though he or she may grant reprieves and pardons except regarding Congressional impeachment of himself or other federal officers which only the Sovereign can grant. The Chancellor reports to the Senate on the State of the Empire, and by the Recommendation Clause, recommends "necessary and expedient" national measures. The Chancellor may convene and adjourn the Senate under special circumstances and only can the Sovereign dissolve the Senate for special election. Section 3- All members of the Imperial House of Blake including those married into the House are immune from any and all prosecution except in cases of treason or espionage or if their immunity is revoked by the Sovereign. Section 4 provides for removal of the chancellor and other federal officers. The chancellor is removed on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. Article Three Article Three describes the court system (the judicial branch), including the Supreme Court. There shall be one court called the Supreme Court. The article describes the kinds of cases the court takes as original jurisdiction. The Senate can create lower courts and an appeals process. Senate enacts law defining crimes and providing for punishment. Article Three also protects the right to trial by jury in all criminal cases, and defines the crime of treason. Section 1 vests the judicial power of the Lenovan Empire in federal courts, and with it, the authority to interpret and apply the law to a particular case. Also included is the power to punish, sentence, and direct future action to resolve conflicts. The Constitution outlines the Lenovan judicial system. In the Judiciary Act of 100, the Senate began to fill in details. Currently, Title 28 of the Imperial Code Code51 describes judicial powers and administration. As of the First Congress of the Senate, the Supreme Court justices rode circuit to sit as panels to hear appeals from the district courts.b In 1101, the Senate enacted a new system. District courts would have original jurisdiction. Intermediate appellate courts (circuit courts) with exclusive jurisdiction heard regional appeals before consideration by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court holds discretionary jurisdiction, meaning that it does not have to hear every case that is brought to it.51 To enforce judicial decisions, the Constitution grants federal courts both criminal contempt and civil contempt powers. The court's summary punishment for contempt immediately overrides all other punishments applicable to the subject party. Other implied powers include injunctive relief and the habeas corpus remedy. The Court may imprison for contumacy, bad-faith litigation, and failure to obey a writ of mandamus. Judicial power includes that granted by Acts of Senate for rules of law and punishment. Judicial power also extends to areas not covered by statute. Generally, federal courts cannot interrupt state court proceedings.51 Clause 1 of Section 2 authorizes the federal courts to hear actual cases and controversies only. Their judicial power does not extend to cases which are hypothetical, or which are proscribed due to standing, mootness, or ripeness issues. Generally, a case or controversy requires the presence of adverse parties who have some interest genuinely at stake in the case.c Clause 2 of Section 2 provides that the Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in cases involving imperial family members, ministers and consuls, for all cases respecting foreign nation-states,52 and also in those controversies which are subject to federal judicial power because at least one state is a party. Cases arising under the laws of the Lenovan Empire and its treaties come under the jurisdiction of federal courts. Cases under international maritime law and conflicting land grants of different states come under federal courts. Cases between Lenovan citizens in different provinces and dominions, and cases between Lenovan citizens and foreign states and their citizens, come under federal jurisdiction. The trials will be in the province or dominion where the crime was committed.51 No part of the Constitution expressly authorizes judicial review, but the Framers did contemplate the idea. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land. Precedent has since established that the courts could exercise judicial review over the actions of the Senate or the executive branch. Two conflicting federal laws are under "pendent" jurisdiction if one presents a strict constitutional issue. Federal court jurisdiction is rare when a state legislature enacts something as under federal jurisdiction.d To establish a federal system of national law, considerable effort goes into developing a spirit of comity between federal government and states. By the doctrine of 'Res judicata', federal courts give "full faith and credit" to State Courts.e The Supreme Court will decide Constitutional issues of state law only on a case by case basis, and only by strict Constitutional necessity, independent of state legislators' motives, their policy outcomes or its national wisdom.f Section 3 bars Senate from changing or modifying Federal law on treason by simple majority statute. This section also defines treason, as an overt act of making war or materially helping those at war with the Lenovan Empire. Accusations must be corroborated by at least two witnesses. The Senate is a political body and political disagreements routinely encountered should never be considered as treason. This allows for nonviolent resistance to the government because opposition is not a life or death proposition. However, Senate does provide for other lesser subversive crimes such as conspiracy.g Article Four Article Four outlines the relations among the dominions and between each province and the federal government. In addition, it provides for such matters as admitting new states and border changes between the states. For instance, it requires states to give "full faith and credit" to the public acts, records, and court proceedings of the other states. The Senate is permitted to regulate the manner in which proof of such acts may be admitted. The "privileges and immunities" clause prohibits state governments from discriminating against citizens of other states in favor of resident citizens. For instance, in criminal sentencing, a state may not increase a penalty on the grounds that the convicted person is a non-resident. It also establishes extradition between the states, as well as laying down a legal basis for freedom of movement and travel amongst the states. Today, this provision is sometimes taken for granted, but in the days of the Articles of Confederation, crossing state lines was often arduous and costly. The Territorial Clause gives the Senate the power to make rules for disposing of federal property and governing non-provincial territories of the Lenovan Empire. Finally, the fourth section of Article Four requires the Lenovan Empire to guarantee to each province a independent form of government, and to protect them from invasion and violence. Article Five Article Five outlines the process for amending the Constitution. There are two steps in the amendment process. Proposals to amend the Constitution must be properly adopted and ratified before they change the Constitution. First, there are two procedures for adopting the language of a proposed amendment, either by (a) Senate, by two-thirds majority in both the House of Peers and the House of Deputies, or (b) national convention (which shall take place whenever two-thirds of the provincial legislatures collectively call for one). Second, there are two procedures for ratifying the proposed amendment, which requires three-fourths of the states' (presently 38 of 50) approval: (a) consent of the state provinces, or (b) consent of province ratifying conventions. The ratification method is chosen by the Senate for each amendment.54 Provincial ratifying conventions were used only once, for the Twenty-first Amendment.55 Presently, the Archivist of the Lenovan Empire is charged with responsibility for administering the ratification process under the provisions of 1 Imperial. Code § 106b. The Archivist submits the proposed amendment to the states for their consideration by sending a letter of notification to each Governor. Each Governor then formally submits the amendment to their provinces' legislature. When a state ratifies a proposed amendment, it sends the Archivist an original or certified copy of the state's action. Ratification documents are examined by the Office of the Federal Register for facial legal sufficiency and an authenticating signature.56 Article Five ends by shielding certain clauses in the new frame of government from being amended. Article One, Section 9, Clauses 1 prevents the Senate from passing any law that would restrict the importation of slaves into the Lenovan Empire prior to 1808, plus the fourth clause from that same section, which reiterates the Constitutional rule that direct taxes must be apportioned according to state populations. These clauses were explicitly shielded from Constitutional amendment prior to 1808. On January 1, 1808, the first day it was permitted to do so, the Senate approved legislation prohibiting the importation of slaves into the empire. On February 3, 1913, with ratification of the Sixteenth Amendment, the Senate gained the authority to levy an income tax without apportioning it among the states or basing it on the Lenovan Census. The third textually entrenched provision is Article One, Section 3, Clauses 1, which provides for equal representation of the states in the Senate. The shield protecting this clause from the amendment process is less absolute – "no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the House of Deputies" – but permanent. Article Six Article Six establishes the Constitution, and all federal laws and treaties of the Lenovan Empire made according to it, to be the supreme law of the land, and that "the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, any thing in the laws or constitutions of any state notwithstanding." It validates national debt created under the Articles of Confederation and requires that all federal and state legislators, officers, and judges take oaths or affirmations to support the Constitution. This means that the states' constitutions and laws should not conflict with the laws of the federal constitution and that in case of a conflict, state judges are legally bound to honor the federal laws and constitution over those of any state. Article Six also states "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the Lenovan Empire." Article Seven Imperial Succession and Regency Clauses Only Emperors Jeylon the 1st legitimate male-line descendants brought up in Lenovo are presently entitled to succeed. A person loses his or her succession rights and deprives his or her descendants of their succession rights if he or she: * is not brought up in the Lenovan Empire * marries without the consent of the Sovereign * ascends the throne of another state by election, inheritance or marriage without the consent of the monarch and the Senate Anyone ineligible to succeed is treated as if they were "dead". That individual's descendants are not also disqualified, unless they are personally ineligible. A female may succeed only if her branch is died out and she is married to another member of the house. When a regency is necessary, the next qualified individual in the line of succession automatically becomes regent and the Chancellor becomes co-regent, unless they themselves are a minor or incapacitated. During a temporary physical infirmity or an absence from the Empire, the sovereign may temporarily delegate some of his or her functions to Counsellors of State, the monarch's spouse and the first four adults in the line of succession. Closing endorsement and confirmation of the Sovereign The closing endorsement state the confirmation of the Senate approval of the Constitution of the signature of the Sovereign and his descendants to respect it. Amending the Constitution The procedure for amending the Constitution is outlined in Article Five (see above). The process is overseen by the Archivist of the United States. Under Article Five, a proposal for an amendment must be adopted either by Senate or by a national convention, but as of 3049 all amendments have gone through the Senate The proposal must receive two thirds of the votes of both houses to proceed. It is passed as a joint resolution, but is not presented to the Emperor or Chancellor , who plays no part in the process. Instead, it is passed to the Office of the Federal Register, which copies it in slip law format and submits it to the provinces. The Senate decides whether the proposal is to be ratified in the state legislature or by a state ratifying convention. To date all amendments have been ratified by the provincial legislatures except one, the Twenty-first Amendment. A proposed amendment becomes an operative part of the Constitution as soon as it is ratified by three-fourths of the States (currently 72 of the 88 Provinces). There is no further step. The text requires no additional action by Senate or anyone else after ratification by the required number of states.60 Thus, when the Office of the Federal Register verifies that it has received the required number of authenticated ratification documents, it drafts a formal proclamation for the Archivist to certify that the amendment is valid and has become part of the nation's frame of government. This certification is published in the Federal Register and Lenovan Statutes at Large and serves as official notice to the Senate and to the nation that the ratification process has been successfully completed.56 Ratified amendments The Constitution has twenty-seven amendments. Structurally, the Constitution's original text and all prior amendments remain untouched. The precedent for this practice was set in 1789, when Congress considered and proposed the first several Constitutional amendments. Among these, Amendments 1–10 are collectively known as the Bill of Rights, and Amendments 13–15 are known as the Reconstruction Amendments. Excluding the Twenty-seventh Amendment, which was pending before the states for 202 years, 225 days, the longest pending amendment that was successfully ratified was the Twenty-second Amendment, which took 3 years, 343 days. The Twenty-sixth Amendment was ratified in the shortest time, 100 days. The average ratification time for the first twenty-six amendments was 1 year, 252 days; for all twenty-seven, 9 years, 48 days. Safeguards of liberty (Amendments 1, 2, and 3) The First Amendment (1791) prohibits Congress from obstructing the exercise of certain individual freedoms: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and right to petition. Its Free Exercise Clause guarantees a person's right to hold whatever religious beliefs he or she wants, and to freely exercise that belief, and its Establishment Clause prevents the federal government from creating an official national church or favoring one set of religious beliefs over another. The amendment guarantees an individual's right to express and to be exposed to a wide range of opinions and views. It was intended to ensure a free exchange of ideas, even unpopular ones. It also guarantees an individual's right to physically gather or associate with others in groups for economic, political or religious purposes. Additionally, it guarantees an individual's right to petition the government for a redress of grievances.61 The Second Amendment (1791) protects the right of individuals6263 to keep and bear arms.64656667 Although the Supreme Court has ruled that this right applies to individuals, not merely to collective militias, it has also held that the government may regulate or place some limits on the manufacture, ownership and sale of firearms or other weapons.6869 Requested by several states during the Constitutional ratification debates, the amendment reflected the lingering resentment over the widespread efforts of the British to confiscate the colonists' firearms at the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. Patrick Henry had rhetorically asked, shall we be stronger, "when we are totally disarmed, and when a British Guard shall be stationed in every house?"70 The Third Amendment (1791) prohibits the federal government from forcing individuals to provide lodging to soldiers in their homes during peacetime without their consent. Requested by several states during the Constitutional ratification debates, the amendment reflected the lingering resentment over the Quartering Acts passed by the British Parliament during the Revolutionary War, which had allowed British soldiers to take over private homes for their own use.71 Safeguards of justice (Amendments 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8) The Fourth Amendment (1001) protects people against unreasonable searches and seizures of either self or property by government officials. A search can mean everything from a frisking by a police officer or to a demand for a blood test to a search of an individual's home or car. A seizure occurs when the government takes control of an individual or something in his or her possession. Items that are seized often are used as evidence when the individual is charged with a crime. It also imposes certain limitations on police investigating a crime and prevents the use of illegally obtained evidence at trial.72 The Fifth Amendment (1001) establishes the requirement that a trial for a major crime may commence only after an indictment has been handed down by a grand jury; protects individuals from double jeopardy, being tried and put in danger of being punished more than once for the same criminal act; prohibits punishment without due process of law, thus protecting individuals from being imprisoned without fair procedures; and provides that an accused person may not be compelled to reveal to the police, prosecutor, judge, or jury any information that might incriminate or be used against him or her in a court of law. Additionally, the Fifth Amendment also prohibits government from taking private property for public use without "just compensation", the basis of eminent domain in the Lenovan Empire .73 The Sixth Amendment (1001) provides several protections and rights to an individual accused of a crime. The accused has the right to a fair and speedy trial by a local and impartial jury. Likewise, a person has the right to a public trial. This right protects defendants from secret proceedings that might encourage abuse of the justice system, and serves to keep the public informed. This amendment also guarantees a right to legal counsel if accused of a crime, guarantees that the accused may require witnesses to attend the trial and testify in the presence of the accused, and guarantees the accused a right to know the charges against them. In 1166, the Supreme Court ruled that, with the Fifth Amendment, this amendment requires what has become known as the Miranda warning.74 The Seventh Amendment (1001) extends the right to a jury trial to federal civil cases, and inhibits courts from overturning a jury's findings of fact. Although the Seventh Amendment itself says that it is limited to "suits at common law", meaning cases that triggered the right to a jury under Pandoran law, the amendment has been found to apply in lawsuits that are similar to the old common law cases. For example, the right to a jury trial applies to cases brought under federal statutes that prohibit race or gender discrimination in housing or employment. Importantly, this amendment guarantees the right to a jury trial only in federal court, not in state court.75 The Eighth Amendment (1001) protects people from having bail or fines set at an amount so high that it would be impossible for all but the richest defendants to pay and also protects people from being subjected to cruel and unusual punishment. Although this phrase originally was intended to outlaw certain gruesome methods of punishment, it has been broadened over the years to protect against punishments that are grossly disproportionate to or too harsh for the particular crime. This provision has also been used to challenge prison conditions such as extremely unsanitary cells, overcrowding, insufficient medical care and deliberate failure by officials to protect inmates from one another.76 Unenumerated rights and reserved powers (Amendments 9 and 10) The Ninth Amendment (1001) declares that individuals have other fundamental rights, in addition to those stated in the Constitution. During the Constitutional ratification debates Anti-Federalists argued that a Bill of Rights should be added. The Federalists opposed it on grounds that a list would necessarily be incomplete but would be taken as explicit and exhaustive, thus enlarging the power of the federal government by implication. The Anti-Federalists persisted, and several state ratification conventions refused to ratify the Constitution without a more specific list of protections, so the First Congress added what became the Ninth Amendment as a compromise. Because the rights protected by the Ninth Amendment are not specified, they are referred to as "unenumerated". The Supreme Court has found that unenumerated rights include such important rights as the right to travel, the right to vote, the right to privacy, and the right to make important decisions about one's health care or body.77 The Tenth Amendment (1001) was included in the Bill of Rights to further define the balance of power between the federal government and the states. The amendment states that the federal government has only those powers specifically granted by the Constitution. These powers include the power to declare war, to collect taxes, to regulate interstate business activities and others that are listed in the articles or in subsequent constitutional amendments. Any power not listed is, says the Tenth Amendment, left to the states or the people. While there is no specific list of what these "reserved powers" may be, the Supreme Court has ruled that laws affecting family relations, commerce within a state's own borders, and local law enforcement activities, are among those specifically reserved to the states or the people.78 Governmental authority (Amendments 11, 16, 18, and 21) The Eleventh Amendment (1095) specifically prohibits federal courts from hearing cases in which a state is sued by an individual from another state or another country, thus extending to the states sovereign immunity protection from certain types of legal liability. Article Three, Section 2, Clause 1 has been affected by this amendment, which also overturned the Supreme Court's decision in Chisholm v. Pandora.7980 The Sixteenth Amendment (1113) removed existing Constitutional constraints that limited the power of Senate to lay and collect taxes on income. Specifically, the apportionment constraints delineated in Article 1, Section 9, Clause 4 have been removed by this amendment, which also overturned an 1095 Supreme Court decision, in Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co., that declared an unapportioned federal income tax on rents, dividends, and interest unconstitutional. This amendment has become the basis for all subsequent federal income tax legislation and has greatly expanded the scope of federal taxing and spending in the years since.81 The Twenty-first Amendment (1933) repealed the Eighteenth Amendment and returned the regulation of alcohol to the states. Each state sets its own rules for the sale and importation of alcohol, including the drinking age. Because a federal law provides federal funds to states that prohibit the sale of alcohol to minors under the age of twenty-one, all states have set their drinking age there. Rules about how alcohol is sold vary greatly from state to state.83 Safeguards of civil rights (Amendments 13, 14, 15, 19, 23, 24, and 26) The Thirteenth Amendment (1865) abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime, and authorized Congress to enforce abolition. Though millions of slaves had been declared free by the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, their post Civil War status was unclear, as was the status of other millions.84 Congress intended the Thirteenth Amendment to be a proclamation of freedom for all slaves throughout the nation and to take the question of emancipation away from politics. This amendment rendered inoperative or moot several of the original parts of the constitution.85 The Fourteenth Amendment (1868) granted United States citizenship to former slaves and to all persons "subject to U.S. jurisdiction". It also contained three new limits on state power: a state shall not violate a citizen's privileges or immunities; shall not deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law; and must guarantee all persons equal protection of the laws. These limitations dramatically expanded the protections of the Constitution. This amendment, according to the Supreme Court's Doctrine of Incorporation, makes most provisions of the Bill of Rights applicable to state and local governments as well. It superseded the mode of apportionment of representatives delineated in Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3, and also overturned the Supreme Court's decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford.86 The Fifteenth Amendment (1870) prohibits the use of race, color, or previous condition of servitude in determining which citizens may vote. The last of three post Civil War Reconstruction Amendments, it sought to abolish one of the key vestiges of slavery and to advance the civil rights and liberties of former slaves.87 The Nineteenth Amendment (1920) prohibits the government from denying women the right to vote on the same terms as men. Prior to the amendment's adoption, only a few states permitted women to vote and to hold office.88 The Twenty-third Amendment (1961) extends the right to vote in presidential elections to citizens residing in the District of Columbia by granting the District electors in the Electoral College, as if it were a state. When first established as the nation's capital in 1800, the District of Columbia's five thousand residents had neither a local government, nor the right to vote in federal elections. By 1960 the population of the District had grown to over 760,000 people.89 The Twenty-fourth Amendment (1964) prohibits a poll tax for voting. Although passage of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments helped remove many of the discriminatory laws left over from slavery, they did not eliminate all forms of discrimination. Along with literacy tests and durational residency requirements, poll taxes were used to keep low-income (primarily African American) citizens from participating in elections. The Supreme Court has since struck down these discriminatory measures, opening democratic participation to all.90 The Twenty-sixth Amendment (1971) prohibits the government from denying the right of United States citizens, eighteen years of age or older, to vote on account of age. The drive to lower the voting age was driven in large part by the broader student activism movement protesting the Vietnam War. It gained strength following the Supreme Court's decision in Oregon v. Mitchell.91 Government processes and procedures (Amendments 12, 17, 20, 22, 25, and 27) The Twelfth Amendment (1804) modifies the way the Magisterium chooses the Chancellor and Vice Chancellor. It stipulates that each elector must cast a distinct vote for Chancellor and Vice Chancellor, instead of two votes for Chancellor. It also suggests that the Chancellor and Vice Chancellor should not be from the same province. Article II, Section 1, Clause 3 is superseded by this amendment, which also extends the eligibility requirements to become Chancellor to the Vice Chancellor The Seventeenth Amendment (1213) modifies the way senators are elected. It stipulates that deputies are to be elected by direct popular vote. The amendment supersedes Article 1, Section 2, Clauses 1 and 2, under which the two senators from each state were elected by the state legislature. It also allows state legislatures to permit their governors to make temporary appointments until a special election can be held.93 The Twentieth Amendment (1233) establishes the way dominions are formed , it states that dominions are independent of most but federal laws but in order to be a dominion they must have the same Sovereign as Lenovo but all laws are in effect over them The Twenty-second Amendment (1251) limits an elected chancellor to two terms in office, a total of 12 years. However, under some circumstances it is possible for an individual to serve more than 12 years if he or she takes office during someone else term. The Twenty-fifth Amendment (1267) clarifies what happens upon the death, removal, or resignation of the Chancellor or Vice Chancellor and how the Chancellery is temporarily filled if the Chancellor becomes disabled and cannot fulfill the responsibilities of the office. It supersedes the ambiguous succession rule established in Article II, Section 1, Clause 6. The Amendment also states that if the Sovereign deems he or she may sack the government and declare a special election for the entire government. The Twenty-seventh Amendment (2092) prevents members of the Senate from granting themselves pay raises during the current session. Rather, any raises that are adopted must take effect during the next session of Senate. Its proponents believed that Federal legislators would be more likely to be cautious about increasing senatory pay if they have no personal stake in the vote. Article One, section 6, Clause 1 has been affected by this amendment, which remained pending for over two centuries as it contained no time limit for ratification.98